30th Anniversary Comic Strip Film Announced

GOLD will air Five Go To Rehab

It's been announced The Comic Strip Presents... team will return with a 30th anniversary special later year.

Five Go To Rehab will revisit the Enid Blyton characters who first aired in the debut Comic Strip Presents film, 1982's Five Go Mad in Dorset. The new film follows last year's revival special, The Hunt for Tony Blair.

Channel Four turned down Five Go To Rehab, before satellite channel GOLD scooped the film up. It's also expected to run a two-hour retrospective on the series.

According to trade magazine, Broadcast, negotiations between production company, Great Western Features, and original stars including Adrian Edmondson, Jennifer Saunders, Dawn French and Robbie Coltrane, are currently under way.

Executive producer Nick Smith told the magazine, "GOLD has shown a lot of the Comic Strip films, so we had a good relationship, and the anniversary project seemed to be a perfect fit for the channel because of its retro feel."

GOLD commissioner Sarah Fraser added, "The Comic Strip is a heritage brand which we can update. It will have a nostalgic feel with a contemporary twist."